Brick-cleaning machine



S. M. FUNK BRJ ICK CLEANING MACHINE Filed June 9, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet lAif'hgg Nov. 24, 1925. 1,563,081 M. FUNK BRICK CLEANING MACHINE FiledJune 9, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Nov. 24, 1925. 1,563,081

S. M. FUNK BRICK CLEANING MACHINE le J e 9, 1922 3 Sheets-Sheet 3Patented Nov. 24,-, 1925.

UNITED STATES lATENT @EFMIE.

SAMUEL M. FUNK, 0F DECATUR, XLLINOISI.

BRICK-CLEANING MACHINE.

Application filed June 9,

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL M. FUNK, a citizen of the United States,residing at Decatur, in the county of Macon and State of Illinois, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Brick-Cleaning Machines, ofwhich the following is a specification.

This invention relates to brick cleaning machines and has for its objectto provide a portable machine designed for rapidly cleaning the severalsurfaces and ends of a brick which may be coated with mortar.

An object is to provide a machine in which a brick can be set in a givenposition and will be transferred through the machine and subjected toattrition to effect the removal of the mortar without turning the brickover, or partly turning it over, during its traverse of the machine.

A further object is to provide means for initially acting upon oppositefaces and means for acting upon a top longitudinal edge and subsequentmeans for cleaning the ends of the bricks, all while it is traveling,without change of position upon its own axis.

An embodiment of the invention is de scribed in the followingspecification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in whichFig. 1 is a plan of a preferred form of the machine, parts of which arebroken away.

Fig. 2 is aside elevation of the machine looking toward its left handside from the feeding end of the machine.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the machine looking toward its right handside from the feeding end of the machine.

The invention is embodied in a portable type of machine including asuitable truck frame having longitudinal horizontal rails or side bars 2below which is arranged a substantial chassis 3 supported upon theground wheels l which may be arranged in pairs at each end of the frame.Bricks to be cleaned are adapted to be fed into one end of the machineas at the left in Fig. 1

and discharged at the other end in a sub stantially cleaned condition;the mortar having been removed during the traverse of the bricks throughthe machine.

The bricks are designed to be successively passed with a continuousmovement from end to end of the machine substantially withoutinterruption and without being r0- 1922. Serial No. 566,953.

tated on their own axes during the opera tion.

The mechanism of the machine is driven by power from any suitablesource, which may be transferred by a driving belt B to a main crossshaft S having a master pulley l3 engaged by the belt B. On the oppositeend of the main shaft 3 is a pinion 5 which engages with a large gear 6that is secured upon a cross shaft 7 5 the several shafts beingrespectively mounted in journal bearings or boxes of simple and usualtype indicat-ed in the drawings and not requiring specific reference.

Upon the cross shaft 7 is secured a trans mitting means including asprocket wheel 8 engaged by a sprocket chain 9 extending parallel to theside of the frame and driving a sprocket pinion 10. This pinion ismounted upon a belt shaft 11- extending across the frame and being shownas provided intermediate its ends-with a sprocket wheel 12 which isengaged by the contigu ous end of a brick advancing conveyor con sistingof a sprocket belt 13. Along the belt is provided, at suitableintervals, chairs or impelling lugs 1% extending upwardly on the topstretch of the belt between feed guides 15 provided at the feed end ofthe machine and between the adjacent faces of which is formed anentrance 16 into which bricks are successively introduced upon theconveyor 13 as it sweeps up around a guide pinion 17. This pinion issecured upon a transverse shaft 18 arranged across the feed end of themachine.

The bricks to be cleaned are set on one of their longitudinal edges onthe conveyor 13 and pass toward a pair of opposed scraper carriers 19and 20, these being arranged upon suitable transverse supporting bars'21 or other means forming parts of the frame. Each scraper carrier isyieldingly pressed inwardly toward the passing stretch of conveyor 13 asby means of substantial springs 22, the outer ends of which aresupported upon adjustable blocks 23 which are shifted by means ofadjusting screws 24L mounted in upwardly extending arms 25 provided uponthe frame work. Inward movement of the, carriers is limited by anysuitable stop. Springs 19 press down blocks 19 and 20.

Each carrier is shown as provided with a plurality of scraper blades 26,the inner edges of which are exposed vertically so a= to engage theplaster bearing contiguous faces of the bricks passing in the channelbetween the yielding carriers 20. Prefera bly, the blades 26 areinclined slightly in the direction of movement of the bricks beingcleaned and the blades are adjustable inwardly to compensate for wearand may be respectively set by set screws 2? which are accessible innotches provided in the outer faces of the carriers. It will be seenthat since the carriers are set in opposition and each presents scrapingblades to the bricks, the adhering mortar on the side faces of thebricks will be scraped off before the bricks are finally clear of thescrapers.

The bricks, having their side faces cleaned, are then advanced by theconveyor 13 into a guideway 27 having a fixed wall opposite to whichpasses a parallel stretch of a second conveyor 30 consisting of asprocket chain having outwardly extending impelling lugs 31. lhe frontend of the conveyor 30 engages a sprocket wheel 32arranged 011 avertical shaft 33 and the conveyor 30 may be tensioned by anintermediate idler 34 mounted on a bracket arm attached to the top ofthe frame. The rear end of the conveyor belt 80 engages a drivingsprocket 36 arranged on the upper end of a vertical shaft 37. This shafte:-; tends downwardly and carries a beveled gear 38 meshing with adriving bevel 3 which is secured on a horizontal shaft 40. On this shaftis secured a sprocket wheel all engaging a sprocket chain 22 whichextends upwardly to, and is driven by, a sprocket wheel 43 secured onthe cross shaft 7. In this manner power is transmitted from the mainshaft through the train just described to drive the feed belt orconveyor 30. This operates to ad ance the bricks successively along thesupporting guide 27 and through a further mortar removii means. Thismeans consists of a set of scrapers 44; mounted in opposed supports, oneof which is shown as cinnprising a carrier 4.5, Fig. 1, in which thescrapers 44:, in the form of blades, are mounted in an oblique forwardlyand downwardly inclined position to engage the contiguous edges of thebricks as they pass through suitable lateral guides 4C6 and 47. One ofthe guides as 46 may, if desired, be yieldingly supported as by springs48 on its ends. As the bricks pass the cutters 44, their longitudinaledges are scraped and the adhering mortar removed. From the edgescraping means the bricks are conveyed by the sprocket chain or belt 30in the same direction of travel until they pass onto the top stretchesof a pair of conveying sprocket chains 50 which are arrangedtransversely across one end of the machine and adjacent to the endsprocket 36 of the conveyor 30. The chains 50 constitute a conveyor forreceiving the bricks from the conveyor 30 and, then shifting themtransversely, while sitting on longitudinal edge, into engagement withmeans for scraping the end surfaces of the bricks. The chains 50 aremounted on horizontal shafts 51 and 52, the latter being provided with apinion 53 engaging a complementary pinion 54: which is secured on across shaft 55. On one end of this shaft there secured a sprocket wheel56 engaging a sprocket chain 57 which in turn engages a driving pinion38 on the cross shaft 7 carrying the master gear 6.

The end scraping means includes a pair of opposed guide members (30 seton edge and on each side of the conveyor formed by the connected chains50; the guides 60 also form carriers in which are mounted scrapingblades 61. The carriers are normally pressed inwardly by respectivesprings 62 so as to maintain the scrapers in a contract ed positionrelative to the conveyor chains 50 so as to engage and scrape the endsof the bricks as they pass through.

It will be seen, therefore, that the bricks are fed into one end of themachine while resting on horizontal edge or face and. continue throughthe machine without interruption of travel and without requiring changeof position of each brick on its own axis.

The brick is subject to the concurrent scraping action of scrapers onopposite sides so that as the softer mortar is removed, the brick ismaintained in such a position as to cause the scraping of the mortardown to the face of the brick on each of its sides.

A top guide plate is arranged over the rear end of the conveyor 30 andover the intermediate portion of the transverse convey or 50. It isyieldingly pressed down by springs 71 supported by suitable overheadbrackets 72.

Various n'iodilications and changes may be resorted to within the spiritof the invention as claimed.

lVhat is claimed is:

1. In a brick cleaning machine, a series of sets of scraping mechanisms,and continuously acting conveyor means for advancing continuously on alongitudinal edge the bricks to be cleaned successively from onemechanism to another along the series so that parallel faces areconcurrently subjected to a scraping and cleaning action to removeadhering mortar. v

2. In a brick cleaning machine, a series of sets of scraping mechanismsfor cleaning the edge, side and end faces of a brick, and a continuouslyacting conveyor means for advancing continuously on a longitudinal edgethe bricks to be cleaned success vely from one mechanism to anotheralong the series so that parallel faces are concurrently subjected to ascraping and cleaning action to remove adhering mortar, said mechanismsoperative without change of position of each brick on its own axis.

3. In a brick cleaning machine, a series of sets of scraping mechanisms,andnneans for advancing constantly on an edge the bricks to be cleanedsuccessively and without tilting from one mechanism to another along theseries so that parallel faces are concurrently subjected to a scrapingand cleaning action to remove adhering mortar, said cleaning mechanismseach including a yieldable carrier provided with a plurality of scrapingblades and mechanism to continuously move in one direction the means foradvancing the bricks.

l. A brick cleaning machine comprising in combination a series of firstscrapers, a

"conveyor for advancing the bricks through the scrapers, and a secondconveyor for con veying the bricks in the same direction and on the sameface through a second scraper, the second scraper being at right anglesto the first scraper.

5. A brick cleaning machine comprising in combination a series of firstscrapers, a conveyor for advancing the bricks through the scrapers,asecond conveyor for conveying the bricks in the same direction and onthe same face through a second scraper, the second scraper being atright angles to the first scraper, a third conveyor moving the brickssideways from the first and second conveyors without tilting or turningthe bricks, and a third scraper to scrape the bricks upon the faces notalready acted upon.

6. A brick cleaning machine comprising a frame, a primary feedingconveyor arranged on the frame and presenting a horizontal feedingstretch, carriers arranged in a parallel position along the feedingstretch of the conveyor and provided with means for concurrentlyscraping parallel side faces of the bricks; a second conveyor arrangedto travel about vertical axes and presenting a feeding stretch axiallyaligned with the first feeding stretch, scraping means disposed alongthe feeding stretch of the second conveyor for removing mortar fromlongitudinal edges of bricks while they are resting on edge, means forsuccessively transferring the bricks by a move ment at, right angles tothe initial feeding movement, and means for scraping the ends of thebricks while being carried by the last named means.

7. In a brick cleaning machine, means for moving continuously the bricksthrough scraper units comprising, a first scraper unit having blocksresiliently supported and scrapers fixed therein, a second scraper unitcomprising blocks resiliently mounted with scrapers fixed therein, saidsecond scrapers having their cutting edges at right angles to the firstscrapers, and a third scraper unit lying in a path at right angles tothe first and second scrapers having blocks resiliently mounted withfixed scrapers secured therein.

8. A brick cleaning machine comprising a frame, a primary feedingconveyor arranged on the frame and presenting a horizontal feedingstretch, carriers arranged in parallel position along the feedingstretch of the conveyor and being provided with means for concurrentlyscraping parallel side faces of the bricks; a second conveyor arrangedto travel about vertical axes and presenting a feeding stretch axiallyaligned with the first feeding stretch, scraping means disposed alongthe feeding stretch of the second conveyor for removing mortar fromlongitudinal edges of bricks while they are resting on edge, means forsuccessively transferring the bricks by a movement at right angles tothe initial feeding movement, and means for scraping the ends of thebricks while being carried by the last named means, the brick beingsupported on a horizontal edge by each conveyor and without being turnedover.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

SAMUEL M. FUNK.

